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Top Gear names BMW i8 Car of the Year, Corvette, Ferrari, Mercedes also win big

The lads at Top Gear have released their listing of the finest cars of the past year, handing the ultimate honor to BMW's revolutionary i8 plug-in-hybrid supercar. "The i8 is a milestone in the annals of automotive history and a glorious statement for an exciting and positive future. The i8 delivers - and then some," the British mag wrote. The i8, though, was far from the only hybridized car to take victories. James May and Richard Hammond both highlighted hybrids as their personal cars of the year, with May saluting the Ferrari LaFerrari and the Hamster, unsurprisingly, heaping praise on the Porsche 918 Spyder. Jeremy Clarkson, meanwhile, opted to shock many by selecting not only an American car as his best of 2014, but giving the honor to of all things, a Corvette. Clarkson wasn't the only person to honor the USA's iconic sports car, with the new, 650-horsepower Z06 variant being named TG's Muscle Car of the Year. Other big winners include Mercedes-Benz, which TG honored for S-Class Coupe (Luxury Car of the Year), the new AMG GT (Sports Car of the Year) and the not-for-US C-Class Estate (Family Car of the Year). The 458 Italia Speciale A snagged a second win for Ferrari. The best of the rest include the Citroen C4 Cactus, Renault Twingo, Volkswagen Golf R, Lamborghini Huracan and Audi TT. Take a look below for the celebratory press blast from BMW. The BMW i8 wins Top Gear Car of the Year The BMW i8 has been named as Top Gear magazine's global Car of the Year 2014. The plug-in hybrid performance vehicle beat off some stiff competition from a host of other premium and luxury manufacturers to win the overall award. The editorial team of Top Gear commended the BMW i8 for its breadth of abilities. Its 1.5-litre three-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine combined with an electric motor gives searing acceleration and driver enjoyment but all wrapped in a package that takes BMW's EfficientDynamics philosophy to the extreme courtesy of CO2 emissions less than 49g/km and a 135mpg combined cycle figure. Charlie Turner, Editor in Chief at Top Gear magazine, said: "The BMW is a milestone in the annals of automotive history and a glorious statement for an exciting and positive future. The i8 delivers – and then some. It's the kind of car we should celebrate, a beautiful vision of the future, delivered now.

Ferrari LaFerrari XX confirmed, seen lapping the 'Ring?

Ferrari makes road cars and they make race cars, but the automaker found a middle ground somewhere in between when it launched the FXX in 2005. Homologated neither for race or street, the FXX emerged as Maranello's first customer development prototype, "allowing" well-heeled clients to test new components for the factory from behind the wheel of one of the most extreme performance machines Ferrari had ever made.
The FXX was based on the Enzo, and was succeeded by the Fiorano-based 599XX. Given the apparent success of the program, we knew it would only be a matter of time before Ferrari would roll out the next XX prototype. But what would it be based on? The Enzo-succeeding LaFerrari? The F12 Berlinetta that replaced the 599 GTB Fiorano? Or another model entirely, like the 458 Italia, FF or California?
Well now we appear to have our answer. Speaking during the Ferrari Racing Days (an extravaganza of cavallinos prancing around a different racetrack each year, held recently in Sydney), Antonello Coletta confirmed that development is underway on a LaFerrari XX. And he ought to know, seeing as how he's the head of the company's new Sporting Activity Department that overseas all of Ferrari's on-track activities - including the XX program. The news was confirmed by Ferrari in correspondence with Autoblog. Oh, and perhaps because of the spy photos you see above, which were shot recently at the famed Nürburgring track, showing an unpainted LaFerrari of some sort making fast laps and testing various tire options.

Drive goes sideways, shreds tires in a Ferrari F12 Berlinetta

Ferrari has built a monster with its F12 Berlinetta, a V12-powered grand tourer that has the looks of a supermodel and the firepower of a small country. And while it's been on the scene for a minute, Drive's Chris Harris wasn't going to turn down the opportunity to hoon a 740-horsepower prancing horse around the scenic Anglesey Circuit in Wales.
In fact, not only was Ferrari nice enough to loan Harris the F12, but it threw in an extra four sets of tires, just for him to destroy while taking moving pictures. The resulting video is indeed one to watch, not just because of the ample amounts of slow-motion drifting, but because Harris, as always, does a great job of making the viewer feel like they're actually along for the ride. Take a look below for the latest video from Drive.